To avoid overworking the dough  and ending up with a leaden, anything-but-flaky crust  minimize mixing, rolling, and handling. For instance, if your recipes uses a food processor to combine the ingredients quickly and conveniently, pulse the flour and fat until they're barely moistened, rather than selecting the continuous "on" setting.

Keep ingredients as cold as possible. Otherwise, the butter and shortening will be too soft for the shell to hold its shape during baking. For optimal conditions, work in a cool kitchen, measure out the water for mixing and pop it in the freezer until you need it, and wash your hands in cold water before working with the pastry.

Go sparingly on the flour you use for rolling out the dough  too much, and the crust will be dry and fall apart. Scatter just enough flour so that the dough doesn't stick to the rolling pin or rolling surface.

A beautifully browned crust isn't always the best indicator of doneness  instead, check the condition of the filling. Fruit pies are ready to come out when the boiling juices bubble through the openings or slits in the crust; for custard pies like pumpkin, insert a knife two inches from the crust's edge  if it comes out clean, it's ready.

There's a time and a place for thin crust. But when you're craving something extra, super gooey, cheesy, doughy, and just plain hearty, there's nothing more satisfying than one of these deep dish pizzas.